Ronald Reagan once stated, “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children what it was once like in the United States when men were free.”
Address to the annual meeting of the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce March 30, 1961:
I work with a lot of kids. My wife and I go to Washington D.C. every spring. We take school groups around Washington to see our great capital. Our theme is that freedom is not free. When we get to the Korean Memorial you’ll see it written in stone, “freedom is not free.” We don’t want anyone to be killed in combat. Life is precious to us. Our serviceman’s lives are precious as is every life in our country babies, teenagers and adults. We value life. You can see the wheels turning in our student’s minds. They seem to grasp the concept that life is precious. It is never okay to die. But sometimes it’s necessary.
I enjoy the chance to explain to them our precious freedoms and how sacred the sacrifice paid for them is. There are many on this earth that would like to take it away from us. There’s also a jealousy when others see what we have. It is often very different than what they have. There’s also the unfortunate reality that sometimes we forget what was paid in sacrifice for these freedoms. It’s great to be able to share the values that we have. Our family has sacrificed for those values greatly.
Failure is not an option. Ronald Reagan’s wisdom is true for all democracies. It is only one generation away from extinction. In a matter of one generation, Iraq’s democracy will fall if we just walk away and leave Iraq without a stable democracy.
Dear Lord, please make me holy, eager to do what is good and right and just and true. Please redeem many millions more, turning them from darkness to light.
“Who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.” (Titus 2:14)